Former Michigan guard Nik Stauskas answers questions at the NBA draft combine in Chicago on May 15, 2014. Stauskas was selected No. 8 overall in the draft by the Sacramento Kings. Melanie Maxwell | The Ann Arbor News

ANN ARBOR -- Michigan fans have seen Nik Stauskas knock down every possible jump shot in seemingly every possible manner. Sacramento fans, though, are just getting to know the eighth overall pick in the 2014 draft.

So this is how he introduced himself.

The former U-M guard rolled around the arc, off a screen and his flashed his hands for a pass. Ray McCallum, his new Sacramento Kings teammate, obliged, whipping the ball to Stauskas.

Catch. Pull-up jumper. Good.

That's how how Stauskas made his NBA debut on Saturday night in the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas. The game, ultimately a 85-69 loss to the San Antonio Spurs, was less than 20 seconds old.

“For some reason, (even during) my time at Michigan, it was the same thing -- if a play was drawn up for me for the first play of the game, I’d normally knock it down,” Stauskas told the Kings web site after the game. “When I saw (the) first one go down, it (gave me) a little bit of confidence, and from there on, I was just playing.”

It was an impressive debut all around.

Stauskas posted 14 points on 4-of-9 shooting, tying forward Quincy Acy for the team lead in scoring, and added three assists, two steals, two blocks and three turnovers.

His performance coincided with a struggle-filled night by Ben McLemore, the Kings' top-10 draft pick from a year ago, who Stauskas will battle with for minutes at the shooting guard position. McLemore scored 11 points on 2-for-8 shooting. He committed four fouls and a game-high eight turnovers, while going without an assist.

An overall logjam in the Sacramento backcourt was cleared up slightly on Friday. The Kings shipped free-agent point guard Isaiah Thomas to the Phoenix Suns in a sign-and-trade deal that included Suns center Alex Oriakhi and a $7 million trade exception as compensation. The deal was reported by Yahoo.com.

Thomas averaged 20.3 points and 6.3 assists for the Kings last season, but reportedly had a strained relationship with the team.

The move alleviated crowded space at the guard position, where Stauskas has said he believes he can play the one or the two in the NBA.

“I think Nik is going to be a (great) player,” Kings head coach Michael Malone said after Friday night's game against San Antonio. “He has a great feel for the game, he made some good plays for himself tonight and for his teammates, he can shoot the ball (and) he can get to the rim.”

The Kings fumbled a 43-35 halftime lead by making only 2-of-8 field goals and tallying 11 turnovers in the third quarter. The Spurs pieced together a 30-11 run in the meantime to win going away.

In the days leading up to his debut, Stauskas said was not going to hesitate in his first NBA outing. He proved so on the first possession.

“At the end of the day, basketball is basketball,” Stauskas told the Sacramento Bee. “And whether you’re open from three in college or the NBA, a jump shot is a jump shot. I think I’ve been doing a good job of taking my shots when they’re there and trying to be aggressive. I’ve still got work to do, but I feel like things have been going well.”

Brendan F. Quinn covers University of Michigan basketball and football. Follow him on Twitter for the latest on Wolverines hoops. He can be contacted at bquinn@mlive.com